Small World
by grayskies28
Summary: Another fic inspired by LaughingThalia's work on AO3 entitled "Of (Money) Monsters and Men."
1. Chapter 1

**Hi guys! So this is another fic inspired LaughingThalia's story on AO3 but this time this isn't a oneshot. The first chapter is based of LaughingThalia's story and slightly just like my other fic. I hope you guys like it!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Money Monster and any of the Ocean's movies in any shape or form.**

* * *

It was just past two in the morning and Lee was sitting alone in the Money Monster studio with Kyle's discarded gun in one hand and a glass of scotch in the other. He managed to figure out how to get one of the cameras turned on together with a single spotlight, not wanting to alert security of his presence in the building at this hour. He took another swig of the scotch and stared blankly at the camera he has managed to turn on despite his drunkenness.

"The name is Lee Gates. The show is Money Monster. The day is Friday, June 24."

He paused for a second and stared down at the gun, trying to think of what to say through his alcoholic haze, the drink in his hand had not been his first and if the bottle just outside of frame was anything to go by it wouldn't be his last either. Finally he straightened up and held his glass tighter.

"Less than a week ago, I sat here with a man holding this very same gun to my head and a bomb strapped to my chest and I appealed to the millions of people all over the world who were watching the news; who were watching me get taken hostage. A little under a week ago I sat at this very table looking into the same camera and I begged, I pleaded for you to spend eight dollars, eight fuckin' dollars on stock to save the lives of the people in this building, to save my life and no one did."

He took another swig and waved the gun around as if gesturing with his hand.

"Not one person could spare eight dollars to save a life and I think that's terrible. I think if that's the world we live in I don't want to live in it."

He chugged down his cup of scotch, walked over to his table and poured himself another glass

"Then it occurred to me. People spend eight dollars on people in need all the time. Heck, people spend fuckin' eighty dollars on people who should be saved and then it hit me: I don't live in a world where one person won't help their fellow men because of greed or the love of money, no I live in a world where my fellow men won't give up eight fuckin' dollars to save a fuckin' life. Specifically my life. And I know why."

He took another gulp of his drink.

"I'm a fucking asshole! I'm a fucking selfish cunt who's never thought of anyone other than myself my whole life and I made a business by screwing other people over, I made you think I was some sort of fucking stock genius but I'm as clueless as you! What do I know about stock trading? Jack shit that's what. You'd be better off trading off your own assessments of the stock market. I am a terrible, terrible human being and the only good thing I ever did in my life maybe, was exposing Walt Camby for his crimes, I did it to have my own goddamn life. And I put thousands in danger whilst doing so, bringing Kyle into the streets with a gun and a bomb, fake or not, people could have been killed, I mean my friend Ron got shot."

He stopped for half a minute, slowly sipping his drink, thinking of what to say next.

"Kyle wasn't evil. He just wanted to know where his money was. He wanted the truth for every one and he died for the truth. Some of you may say he's a terrorist or a lunatic but he opened my eyes and that doesn't sound very reassuring seeing as I'm sitting here with a gun that was supposedly used by Kyle, getting drunk but he's made the most sense out of every one I've ever met in my entire life. He wasn't a bad guy, he just had a terrible girlfriend."

He heard faint footsteps coming from outside and looked directly at the camera.

"I'm going to give half of my money to Patty, Lenny and to the rest of the crew who stayed here when there was a fucking bomb and the other half will be split between my kid's college fund and a charity of their choice. Now I'm going to put this bullet in my brain and it's going to be on the news and it will trend on Twitter and maybe people will mourn and maybe people will call me an attention seeking son of a bitch for doing this and then, in a couple of days, a week, a month if I'm lucky, people will forget I ever existed and I'll fade into history the way so many do. And Patty, the wonderful Patty Fenn, will always be the only one.. The only one who actually cares about me. The one whose always been there for me."

"Hey, who's in there?", a muffled but familiar voice to Lee's ears said from the other side of the door then three hard knocks.

Lee held the gun tighter in his hand and averted his eyes from the camera to the door and his suspicions to who it was was confirmed.

 _Patty? What in the world is she doing here at this hour?_

"Lee?", Patty said, her voice a bit muffled, clearly confused as he was when she saw his figure through the door. She looked at him from head to toe but her eyes stopped at the sight of the gun in his hand. Her eyes widened and started to open the door which is of course locked.

"LEE! OPEN THIS DOOR NOW!", Patty shouted as she continued rattling the door handle.

Lee stared at her for a moment, watching her try to bust the door open. He took another sip and set the glass on the table. His clutch on the gun tightened as he weighed out his options now that he's been found out.

Patty, on the other hand, was still trying to get the door open.

"Lee, open this door please. C'mon Lee, open this goddamn door.", Patty said, no scratch that, she begged him to open the door, unaware of the tears that are making their way down her cheeks as she did so.

 _Don't do this Lee. Don't do this._

Lee was at lost. For almost five years that he's known her and worked with her, he never heard Patty sound so broken, so defeated. He looked back at her and was surprised to see tears streaming down her cheeks. Seeing her like that made something click inside him and he put the gun's safety on and tucked it at the back of his jeans and went and opened the door.

"LEE!", Patty cried in relief, tears still coming, as she hugged him tightly the moment he opened the door.

Lee smiled and hugged her just as tight as she is hugging him. His hazy mind making him momentarily forget why he was even there until Patty broke the hug and looked at his shoulders. Or more specifically at the studio camera and single spotlight that was on.

"Uuum." He looked down on his feet as he remembered why he was here, to shoot a suicide video and then.. well commit suicide.

"Lee what do you think you're doing?", she asked warily as she walked towards the table shifting her gaze at Lee and the bottle of scotch that was almost empty.

Lee couldn't exactly tell her the truth but in his intoxicated state he found it hard to come up with another excuse to what he was doing in the studio at that hour.

"I just.. I uuum... I was...", he tried to construct something but he couldn't find any words so he ended up looking down at his shoes and then slowly returning his gaze to Patty's.

"Lee you weren't going to...", she looked at him questioningly as if she suspected what he had been doing. Lee walked around the stage and faced the television monitor that Kyle shot when he was held captive, his back facing Patty.

"You weren't going to kill yourself were you?", Patty finally asked, staring at Lee's back, scared of the answer she might get.

He then turned to face her, opened his mouth to rebuff her, to tell her 'What? Of course not! I love living!' but no words came and he couldn't even look her in the eye.

Patty turned around, running her hands through her hair.

"God Lee! Why!?", she caught sight of the camera light signifying that it was on and recording.

"You were filming?", her eyes widened and she spun around as realization hits her. She stared at Lee, waiting for an answer. Her heart was pounding hard in her chest as if it was gonna burst out any second. Lee closed his eyes, confirming her suspicions.

Lee then sighed, defeated. "You always knew me so damn well, Patty."

"God! Why Lee!? Why would you even try to do this? You have people that care about you!", Patty said as she walked past him and stopped the camera from recording and turned it off.

"I only have one person who cares for me Patty! Three marriages and one kid later and you're the only one who gives a damn about me in the world!", Lee shouted, finally letting his drunkenness take control of letting his frustrations out.

"Other people care about you Lee! There's Ron, he got shot for you!", Patty shot back, walking over to him so that they could be face to face.

"He got shot because of me I doubt getting shot was his goal!", He walked through the stage angrily as he retrieved the gun from his back and started swinging it around. Patty flinched at the gesture but she never backed down.

"Bree told me the police were going to shoot you, she was terrified something would happen to you because she cares; Diane Lester risked her job and her relationship for you; Lenny got into a small elevator with a man with a gun and a bomb simply because you asked him too. Matty cares, Sam cares. The whole damn crew cares Lee. People care about you.", Patty said, trying to calm him down.

Lee stopped pacing the stage and looked at her. Patty was shocked to see Lee like this. He has tears running down his cheeks and he seems unaware of them, his eyes were so sad, so broken. This was the first time Patty has seen the amazing Lee Gates so broken and so lost.

"Then why Patty? Why did no one buy the damn stock? Eight dollars Patty. Eight fuckin' dollars to save a life Patty, to save my life.", Lee said as he walked over back to the table and poured himself another glass of scotch and immediately chugged the glass down and poured another.

Patty, knowing that he was getting unstable with his drunkenness and frustrations, quickly walked over to him, grabbed the glass before he can down the liquor once again and kissed him. And to her surprise, Lee kissed her back.

Their kiss lasted for a couple of more seconds until Patty broke the kiss and stared at his eyes.

"They don't know you Lee. They don't know you like I do. They don't matter. They're selfish pricks.", she said trying to resolve the matter.

"I'm a selfish prick." Lee visibly deflated.

"Lee, sweetheart, just give me the gun and we can talk about this, okay?", she slowly reached forward, careful not to startle him, like she had seen Kyle.

"I'm not crazy Patty, I'm not going to just flip out and start shooting.", Lee said, knowing what she was thinking.

"Well it's really hard to believe that when you came here to shoot yourself in the first place.", she retorted opening up her hand in front of him.

He rolled his eyes but handed her the gun. She placed it in the back of her jeans, like Lee did. She had never owned a gun, never even held one before, she briefly wondered if the safety was turned on and if it would go off in her trousers if it wasn't. She ignored her worry about the gun and instead walked around the table and hugged Lee.

Lee automatically wrapped his own arms around Patty, hugging her tightly as if making sure she wasn't gonna disappear like a bubble and that this wasn't his imagination or a hallucination caused by the scotch.

Patty, sensing his body tense and feeling the quick pace of his heart, looked up and planted a small kiss on his cheek.

"I'm here Lee. I'm not going anywhere. I promise.", she said sincerely and hugged him tighter.

Lee visibly relaxed in her arms and his heartbeat slowly returned to its normal pace. They stayed like that for a couple of minutes, hugging each other in the comfortable silence of the studio.

"I really do care about you Lee.", Patty whispered softly, as she broke the hug and stared into Lee's eyes.

"I know. I'm sorry for this.", Lee said, swinging his hands around the studio as a gesture, and then kissed her softly on her forehead.

It was completely platonic, something he hadn't had with a woman in a long time. He didn't have any other female friends, he didn't have a lot of friends actually. But he doesn't really see Patty just as a friend, especially now that he thinks she has the same thing about him after the kiss she gave him when he was about to blow himself up to kingdom come moments ago.

"Anytime Lee. Anytime you want to talk you can come to me. I don't care if it's one o'clock in the morning or eight o'clock at night you only have to call.", she said and smiled.

Lee smiled back and thought of how to address his feelings to Patty. He looked at her as she was turning off the spotlight, leaving only the dim lights of the studio on.

"Hey Patty.", Lee called just as she was about to unplug some equipment Lee thought he needed earlier.

"One second Lee.", she said as she unplugged them.

But Lee couldn't wait anymore, so he walked towards to where she was.

"Patty.", Lee said sounding a bit desperate.

When Patty straightened up and faced him, he immediately kissed her without hesitation while Patty, on the other hand, was shocked at first but then relaxed into the kiss. Lee was sure, of his feelings, of what he wanted, of Patty, he was goddamn sure of it all despite his drunken state. He wasn't surprised at all when she kissed him back with the same amount of force that he is giving into the kiss. He held her face as they kissed, smiling as he did so and Patty wrapped her arms around Lee's neck.

Eventually both of them pulled back from the kiss to catch their breaths with Lee leaning his forehead against hers. After a moment, he stared into her eyes, both of them still catching their breaths from the kiss.

 _This is it. I'm sure of myself. I'm sure of Patty. I'm sure of what I'm feeling._

"Patty..", Lee started, staring at her eyes, still catching his breath.

"Hmmm?", Patty hummed in response, also staring back at Lee, clearly trying to catch her breath.

"I love you.", Lee said without hesitation, still looking deeply into her eyes.

Patty's breath caught in her throat, suddenly feeling like all the air in her lungs faded. She clearly did not expect that. She stared at him for a moment and then regained her stupor. She was about to say something but she was cut by Lee.

"You don't feel the same.", Lee said, his voice too quiet and almost cracking.

Patty shot her head up and saw Lee's face. He looked so defeated and heartbroken. His eyes were showing so much pain and desparation and anger and disappointment all at once that she couldn't quite figure out what he really is feeling. Lee was slowly making his way to get the gun from Patty's back, she acted fast and held his forearms quickly to stop or atleast try to stop him from doing so.

"Lee wait. Stop!", Patty said, trying to calm him down, knowing he's having another emotional breakdown like earlier. But Lee was relentless, he was fighting Patty to get the gun.

"I love you too, Lee!", Patty cried as she tried to make Lee stop.

And he did. He stopped fighting to get the gun from her back and slowly backed away from her a few steps.

"Y-You do?", his voice cracked as he stared at her.

Patty nodded.

"I always had, ever since the day I've met you Lee. I've loved you since the first day I wanted to leave you.", she replied as she walked over to him and wiped a few stray tears from his cheeks.

Lee then hugged her tightly and kissed her hair in response.

"Sshh.. It's okay Lee. I'm here. I love you and I'm here.", Patty whispered as she hugged him back, reassuring him that she loves him as much as he loves her.

"P-Please don't leave me too.", Lee said and hugged her tightly, his voice muffled because he was crying.

Patty, just realizing what Lee's greatest fear above everything else, broke the hug and looked into his awfully swollen eyes.

"Not a chance. Just point the cameras in your direction and we'll figure it out together remember?", Patty smiled as she cracked their inside joke and wiped the tears from his face.

Lee managed to smile a little at the joke and kissed her on the forehead.

"C'mon. Let's get you out of here.", Patty said and helped him towards the door.

* * *

 **And that's the first chapter! Hope you guys liked it! Reviews please!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys! So here's chapter 2! I hope you guys like it!**

 **Disclaimer: I still don't own Money Monster and any of the Ocean's movies.**

* * *

Patty managed to take Lee to his apartment without him falling due to his intoxicated state. She helped him out of his suit, removed his socks and shoes, and his trousers. Lee was trying his best to stay awake as Patty was fixing him up for bed. Patty was about to get up to go to the kitchen and boil some water so she could damp Lee using a towel instead of making him go get a shower but he grabbed her wrist before she can even get up.

"N-No. No. Please. Don't.", Lee said, his voice sounding scared through his sleepy and intoxicated haze.

Patty held his hand and used her other hand to touch his face.

"I'm not leaving sweetheart, I'm just gonna go get something in the kitchen okay? I'll be back, I promise.", she said, soothing him as she gave him quick kiss on the lips and bolted up to the kitchen.

When she went back to the room carrying a bowl of warm wated, she saw Lee already fast asleep. She smiled at the sight of him and knelt beside the bed. She dampened the towel in the warm water, wrung it, and wiped Lee's face.

When she was done, she quickly cleaned up and walked back to the room. She stared at Lee's sleeping form.

"You look so innocent when you're asleep.", Patty whispered as she caressed his cheeks.

Lee stirred for a moment at the touch but didn't wake up. Patty looked at the clock on the bedside table.

4:06 AM

Patty debated on whether she should go home or not. And after a few minutes of weighing her options she finally decided to go home, kissing Lee on the forehead before she go not without leaving a glass of water, tylenol, and a note next to the clock on the bedside table.

Lee woke up with a massive headache. Last night's events were a bit hazy for him but he remembered being with Patty. He searched the bed for his phone only to find it on the bedside table next to a glass of water, tylenol, and a note. He sat up slowly, squinting his eyes as he did and read the note.

 _Good morning Lee! I know you have one hell of a headache right now so please drink the tylenol next to this note okay? Take it easy today. Maybe I'll see you at work, that is if you're already up by 7. I love you sweetheart._

 _Patty_

Lee smiled at her last words and reached for the glass of water and tylenol. Getting up from bed, he checked the time on his phone only to be bombarded with notifications of unread messages and 13 missed calls. He looked at the time.

2:37 PM

He groaned and opened the messages. There were 5 messages from Patty, 4 from Ron, and the other 9 from his other colleagues. He checked who have called him and found out that it was all from Patty. He read Patty's messages and ignored the other 13.

 _"Lee, I'm already at work. If you don't come in by 8, I'll assume you're still asleep." - 7:34 AM_

 _"I couldn't get out during my lunch break, there's a lot of paper works and arrangements to be done. I'll try to come over once I'm done here." - 12:45 PM_

 _"Lee why aren't you answering my calls. You can't possibly be still asleep at this hour." - 1:25 PM_

 _"Lee I swear to God if you try to pull a stunt like last night I will kill you myself. Answer me goddamn it!" - 1:47 PM_

 _"Damn it Lee! Ron says you're not answering him too. Answer me!" - 2:00 PM_

"Holy shit.", Lee whispered to himself as he finished reading the messages.

He immediately dialled Patty's number as he walked towards the bathroom.

 _"Patty Fenn."_ , her voice sounding perfect to Lee's ear.

"Hey Patty.", Lee said, his voice sounding a bit nervous.

 _"Lee! God! Why haven't you answered any of my texts or calls?! Damn it Lee!"_ , Patty cried on the other line.

Lee could tell she's been working all around and is clearly tired just by the tone of her voice. He got out of the bathroom and went to the kitchen.

"Patty I'm fine, really. Still alive up here, no blood all over me. Don't worry. I read your note and I took the tylenol. Thanks by the way. And-", Lee was cut off by Patty.

 _"Don't you dare make jokes right now Lee! It is not funny. Do you know how worried I was?! I had to decide whether or not I should stay at your place but knowing that we have work today, I decided to go home, leaving you all alone there. When I got home last night I couldn't sleep thinking you might wake up in the middle of the night and think that I left you! I.."_ , Patty said, her voice fading.

Lee just stood there in the kitchen, hearing her ragged breath on the other line. He closed his eyes for a moment, trying to think of what to say to her.

"Patty..", Lee whispered softly to the receiver.

Patty didn't reply but Lee unmistakingly heard a couple of sniffs and whimpering from the other line. That's when he realized that she was crying and what kind of asshole he really was.

"Jesus, Patty. I'm sorry okay. I didn't mean to say those things. I'm sorry, sweetheart. I'm sorry. But I really am just fine. I just woke up a few minutes ago, sweetheart. I promise you that I'm fine, just one hell of a headache but I'm all good sweetheart. Please stop crying.", Lee said, trying to make her stop crying.

Lee never wanted to see, know, or even hear her cry. Especially when it's his fault that she is.

"Patty? Sweetheart?", Lee said when she didn't reply once again.

He was starting to feel anxious considering that she wasn't responding to anything he was saying. He ran a hand through his hair as he paced the kitchen.

"Patty..", Lee tried again as he closed his eyes, his voice sounding desperate, hoping she'd say something this time.

 _"I love you Lee, please don't scare me like that again. Please Lee. Don't be an asshole anymore."_ , Patty said, her voice a bit shaky from the crying.

Lee smiled as he opened his eyes.

"You wound me, Patty. Just kidding. I love you too, sweetheart. I won't scare you anymore. I promise.", Lee said as he chuckled.

He heard someone call Patty over the line and some papers ruffling on a table like someone's finding something.

 _"I have to go Lee. I'll come over later okay? I love you."_ , Patty said, sounding like she's been through enough work which she probably already is.

"Okay sweetheart. Don't stress yourself too much. I'll see you later. I love you.", Lee said and hung up the phone.

He walked over to the fridge, smiling like shit to himself. He looked inside the fridge only to see a few bottles of beer, two pitchers of water, an orange juice and a bottle of scotch.

"Guess I'm going out for a late brunch.", Lee said to himself, closed the fridge and walked back to the bedroom.

Meanwhile at work, Patty's been going all around preparing some memos, doing some research, making calls the whole day. She just got off the phone with Lee because there was a call on hold for her. She quickly pretended to ruffle over the papers on her desk as if finding something as she wiped the tears on her cheeks.

"Hold on a second Ron.", Patty said, discreetly wiping her cheeks as Ron stood by the door.

She got some documents for a show she would be directing the following day and stood up.

"What is it?", Patty asked.

"Your sister's on line one.", Ron informed her, slightly shifting his weight to his other leg.

"Got it.", Patty said as Ron turned to leave her office.

She got back to her seat and picked up line one.

"Patty Fenn.", she said into the phone trying to sound casual.

 _"Hey there Pat."_ , the unmistakeable sound of her sister's small voice said on the other line.

"Is everything okay?", Patty asked, sounding a bit concerned of her sister's tone.

But the other line stayed silent. Patty was getting anxious, her sister wouldn't call if it wasn't important or an emergency. There has to be some reason.

"Tess.. What is it honey?", Patty said using her motherly tone on her as she encouraged her sister to tell her whatever it is she wanted to tell.

Patty waited for a moment and heard someone whimpering. Patty's heart stopped when she realized it was from Tess on the other line. She went from calm to a concerned, desperate sister wanting to know what was going on with her sister.

"Tess, what is it?", Patty tried again and waited.

 _"I.. I'm in Manhattan. C-Can I see you?"_ , Tess said from the other line, her voice a bit muffled.

Patty was a bit shocked from what her sister said. The last time she saw her sister was two years ago at Tess and Danny's wedding. They always kept in touch even when they're not together. And Patty knew that Danny would never hurt her sister even in the slightest ways. Would he?

Patty looked up on the clock on the wall.

3:17 PM

"Of course you can honey. I'm almost done with my shift here. Can you wait for another half hour?", Patty asked as she arranged the papers on her table and putting them on a clipboard.

 _"Y-Yeah. I-I can do that."_ , Tess said.

"Okay. I'll meet you at the coffee shop across FNN. You know where that is right?", Patty said, still arranging some papers and saving some files on her laptop.

 _"Yeah. I know."_ , Tess said.

"Okay, I'll see you later. Text me if you're there okay?", Patty replied just as she finished arranging the paper work and shutting her laptop down. She was about to hang up when she thought of something..

"Tess..", she called to her sister on the other line.

 _"Yeah?"_ , Tess replied.

"This isn't about Danny, is it?", Patty asked as she stopped on her way out of her office, waiting for her sister's answer.

But no response came.

Patty ran a hand over through her hair as she closed her eyes and inhaled sharply.

"Daniel Ocean's gonna have a beating he will never forget for the rest of his life."

* * *

 ***Insert drumroll* What do you think happened? Stay tuned for chapter three!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guys! So here's chapter three! Enjoy reading and I hope you guys liked it!**

 **Disclaimer: Still don't own any of the Ocean's movies and Money Monster.**

* * *

Lee was in a restaurant two blocks away from his apartment building and was talking to a waitress.

"I'll take a grilled steak with mashed potatoes and a glass of scotch.", Lee said as he handed the menu back to the waitress.

"Will that be all sir?", the waitress asked.

Lee nodded and smiled at her. The waitress then hurried off. Lee looked around the restaurant and sighed.

 _If only Patty was here._

Lee zoned out for a couple of seconds until a voice brought him back to his senses.

"Lookin' like shit isn't what TV show hosts are supposed to look like is it?"

Lee let out a snort as the person walked over to his table and sat on the chair facing him. Lee smirked and asked a passing waiter to serve two glasses of scotch instead of one.

"It's nice to see you too Danny.", Lee finally addressed to his brother.

"It's been too long.", Danny replied just as the waitress from earlier brought the grilled steak and two glasses of scotch.

"4 years and I never got a word from you or that you got married or an invitation to the wedding for fuck's sake.", Lee said clearly disappointed as he look at his twin's eyes.

Danny sighed and closed his eyes for a moment.

"I'm sorry it's just that-"

"What you do isn't exactly for sharing and for telling. Yeah, yeah I know.", Lee finished his sentence.

Danny went silent. He never got the chance to invite his brother to his wedding because they pulled a job and almost got caught. He didn't want to involve him in all that shenanigans him and his crew were doing.

"Well, what brings you here in Manhattan anyways? Got fed up doing your job in DC?", Lee said, clearly getting easily frustrated due to his hang over from last night's events.

"Are you drunk?", Danny asked.

"Just hung over big bro. Nothin' to worry about.", Lee replied as he downed the scotch stood up and left some money on the table with the check.

"You never drink unless something fucked up.", Danny said as he catches up with Lee by the restaurant's entrance.

"Wanna bet?", Lee said and went out.

Danny sighed and followed his twin.

"Lee!", Danny shouted once they were outside the resto.

"What?", Lee said as he spun around and looked him in the eye.

Danny held his gaze as he inhaled sharply

"What happened?", Danny asked as he put his hand on Lee's shoulders.

Lee snorted and looked at the cars passing by.

"She didn't tell you? She usually tells you everything about and related to me.", Lee said as he scratched the back of his neck,looking down to his shoes.

"Lee..", Danny coaxed his twin.

Lee let out a sigh and faced Danny.

"I attempted to kill myself last night. Everything was going according to my plan and she showed up. In the middle of the night. She's the only one that gives a damn about me Danny! She's sick of me, I know that but she put up with all of my fuck ups because she loves me Daniel! I always thought you'd be the one to put up with me but you left me. You fucking left me for dead Danny!", Lee shouted, not caring if people were looking at them and starting to crowd around them.

Danny, however, was stunned. He had no idea what to say or what to do. He didn't think that the job he asked him to join over 4 years ago still affected his brother.

"Lee.. I.. I'm sorry.", Danny said in a low voice. He wasn't even sure his brother heard it.

Lee let out a shaky breath and regained his composture. His eyes were a bit red and looks like he was about to cry.

"I-It's okay. I-I'm sorry for that."

Danny walked over to him and hugged his brother.

"I got your back from now on okay?", Danny whispered.

"Yeah.", Lee replied.

They broke the hug and laughed.

"Let's go to my place to catch up.", Lee said as they walked.

* * *

Tess just got off the plane when she called her sister. Now she's in her apartment she bought a few years back so whenever she feels like she needs to be close to her sister, she has a place to stay and not bother staying in with Patty. She settled in and unpacked her things. She didn't bring much, only a pouch of her lady things and a few clothes since she never really had time to properly pack up when she was in an argument with Danny while doing so.

 **FLASHBACK**

 _"You promised me Danny! You said the job you pulled off 2 months ago was the last one you'll ever do and then we'll settle down for good!", Tess shouted as she punched and Danny was, well, taking the hits._

 _"We talked about that Tess! I thought we already had an agreement on this?!", Danny shouted back as he caught her fists with his hands._

 _"I thought so too Danny! Why can't you just stop?!", Tess shouted at him as he released her._

 _Tears were coming down her cheeks and she was starting to have a bad time catching her breath. She looked into his eyes, searching for.. something. Something that would click inside him to make him stop from doing his shenanigans with the crew._

 _Danny was staring at her too. He was lost for words. They've been married for three years and Tess never had a problem with his work with the crew. And he knew they already had an agreement on this, but what can he say? "Old habits die hard"? He was about to say something when she walked pass him and started packing some stuff._

 _"What? You're gonna leave me?" , Danny scoffed as he followed her to their room where she was just putting literally everything she can get her hands on in a duffle bag._

 _Tess didn't answer him and kept on packing._

 _"This is ridiculous Tess! Stop this!", Danny said as he moved closer to where she was by the bed._

 _"No Danny! If you stop then I'll stop, what's it gonna be?", Tess asked him without breaking eye contact._

 _Danny was again lost at words. He opened his mouth to speak but no words came out so he ended up holding his wife's gaze. Tess, however, swallowed another lump forming_ _in her throat as she zipped up the bag and walked towards the door._

 _"Tess.."_

 _She stopped in the middle of the room, looked back at Danny and left._

 **END OF FLASHBACK**

Tess was sitting on the bed and looking at the gold band on her ring finger. She wondered what Danny was doing at the moment.

 _Probably doing recon work._

She let out a sigh and checked the time.

3:38 PM

She got up and checked her phone for any texts from Patty but was bombarded with texts from Danny instead. She groaned as she let herself fall onto the bed. She stared up at the ceiling and then closed her eyes as she thought of her husband.

"You're gonna be the death of me Daniel Ocean. How am I supposed to tell you now in this situation?"

* * *

 **And that's the third chapter! I hope you guys liked it!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys! Merry christmas! And so for a little treat for you this holiday here's chapter 4! I hope you guys enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: Still don't own the movies guys.**

* * *

Patty arrived an hour late at the cafè and looked around to see if Tess was already there, but she wasn't. Patty took a seat and called her sister. Tess picked up on the third ring.

 _"Hello?"_ , her sister's voice came from the other line along with the sound of a toilet flushing in the background.

"Hey Tess, it's me. Are we still good?", Patty asked as a waitress came to her table.

 _"Patty! Oh my god I totally forgot! I'm so sorry. I lost track of time and I'm-"_

"Tess? Are you okay? Tess?!", Patty called on to the other line.

Her sister didn't answer, instead she heard multiple retching sounds and ragged breathing from the other line.

"Tess?! Tess, honey are you alright?!", Patty said as she got up and left the cafè. When the line went dead, she hailed a cab and went straight to her sister's apartment.

"So this is your place, huh?", Danny said as they entered Lee's apartment.

"Yep.", Lee said as he walked to the living room, Danny following behind.

"Why don't you take a seat and I'll get us something to drink.", Lee said thoughtfully as he walked towards the kitchen.

"Lee, I'm not here to drink with you buddy.", Danny said, making his brother stop halfway to the kitchen.

Lee turned to face him and sighed. He walked back and sat next to him on the couch, knowing where their talk would be heading later.

"What happened?", Danny began.

"I told you-", but Lee was cut off by his brother.

"No Lee! What happened?", Danny asked him again without breaking eye contact.

Lee broke eye contact and looked at the floor. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"I was taken hostage last week, on air.", Lee said, still staring at the floor as if the memory's playing back in his mind.

"Wait, what?! Patty didn't-", but Danny was interrupted by Lee.

"I know. She didn't tell you and that got me wondering to why she didn't when you told me she didn't tell you anything when she does every single time I fuck up.", Lee said numbly.

Danny didn't know how to reply so he stayed silent, waiting for his brother to continue.

"Anyway, I was taken hostage. I asked the people who were watching to buy IBIS stock for eight fucking dollars to save the lives of the people in the building.. to save my life. But no one did. No one bought a single fucking stock. No one cares.", Lee said as if he memorized it for days.

Danny was shocked. He never thought of Lee as the type who would really kill himself. He was about to say something when Lee spoke up.

"No one cares except her. Patty.", Lee said with a small smile lighting up his face.

Danny noticed the change in his brothers physical appearance at the mention of Patty.

"You love her don't you?", Danny finally asked.

Lee looked up from the floor and looked at his brother with the small smile still in his face. He looked away for a bit, as if thinking about an answer for that, then looked at him again and nodded with a smile.

"Yeah. And she loves me too which makes everything seem so perfect right now.", Lee said as he looked at his brother.

Danny smiled at his brother in response. He was about to say something when Lee's phone rang.

"Gates, oh hey Patty.", Lee said as he answered the phone. Danny just sat there waiting for his brother to finish.

 _"Lee! Thank god! I need you to come to the hospital right now."_

"What? The hospital? Why are you in the hospital are you okay?", Lee said, immediately standing up and getting his car keys and rushing to the door with Danny following behind.

 _"No it's not me. I'm okay. Just get here. We need to contact Danny. It's Tess."_

Lee stopped before the door and looked at Danny as he listened to what Patty said.

"He's with me. We're on our way.", Lee said and hung up as he rushed out.

"Lee why did you tell her I'm with you? She'll tell her sister! And why is she at the hospital?", Danny asked as he ran after his brother all the way down the stairs to the parking area. But Lee just ignored him as he unlocked the car.

"Lee!", Danny called.

"Get in the car Danny.", Lee said his voice full of authorization.

"Just tell me what the fuck is going on first.", Danny said still standing at the parking lot.

Lee sighed andtold him.

"It's Tess."

* * *

Danny ran as fast as he could to the hospital's entrance from the parking lot with Lee behind him. He immediately went to the front desk and asked for Tess.

"She's in the emergency room. Go straight down this hall then to the right.", the nurse said.

Danny took off as soon as he was told where Tess was, Lee smiled at the nurse and thanked her then ran after his brother.

Danny was anxious. He should've known Tess would come to Manhattan to her sister. He ran down the hall and found Patty with her hands running through her hair at the end of the hall by the doors of the emergency room.

Both Lee and Danny stopped running and Patty looked up to their direction.

"Lee!", Patty cried as she ran towards them, or Lee in particular.

"Hey, hey. I'm here. We're here.", Lee calmed her down as he caught her in his arms and hugged her tightly.

Patty was crying and obviously worried sick about her sister's condition.

Danny's heart missed a beat when he saw Patty's tear-stained face. He averted his eyes from the couple to the closed doors of the emergency room.

"W-What happened?", Danny managed to say, his eyes not leaving the closed doors.

Patty wiped her cheeks of the tears and looked at Danny.

"I-I don't know. She called me around 3PM and told me she wanted to see me. So I told her to meet me at the cafè across FNN and she said okay. I arrived late and I thought she was already there but she wasn't so I called her cell. She picked up and told me she lost track of time and the line went silent and then after a few seconds I heard her retching so I left the cafè immediately and went straight to her apartment-"

"Her apartment? She has an apartment here?", Danny interjected, bewildered because he had no idea Tess has an apartment in Manhattan.

"Yeah. She bought it a few years ago.", Patty said in a small voice, obviously still thinking about her sister. Lee, sensing her anxiety, pulled her closer to him and kissed her hair.

"Anyway, when I got to her apartment she was unconscious on the floor in the bathroom. I called 911 and here we are.", Patty finished her story and she was shaking.

"Hey, hey. Tess is gonna be fine sweetheart. Calm down. I'm here.", Lee soothed her as he pulled her into a tight hug and kissed her forehead.

Lee looked at his brother only to find his eyes on him already. He gave Patty another hug and whispered to her ear.

"I'll just talk to Danny for a moment okay? Why don't you take a seat first okay?"

Patty nodded as she broke the hug. Lee gave her a quick kiss on the lips and walked towards his brother.

"Hey, how you holdin' up bro?", Lee asked as he patted his brother's shoulder.

"I-I don't know Lee. I-I should've.. I should've been.. I-I..", Danny's voice failed him.

Lee held both of his brother's shoulders and looked straight into his eyes.

"Hey. Listen to me. You couldn't have known this was going to happen."

After a few moments Lee suddenly realized something.

"Wait, how come you didn't know Tess was here in Manhattan?", he asked.

Danny's body stiffened at the question and he avoided Lee's eyes. Lee, however, noticed the change in his brother's posture and pressed on.

"Danny.", he tried again, this time his voice a bit firmer.

"We had a fight okay? She left me.", Danny cried and paced the hall.

He ran his hands through his hair and continued pacing. His mind was killing him. He wanted to know about Tess' condition. He wanted to say he was sorry and that he'll stop if that's what she wants. Thousands of thoughts are running in his mind that he can no longer tell which are the one's relevant to his situation.

Lee watched as his brother enter another emotional and mental breakdown. He was amazed of how identical they really were that even their way of thinking are the same. He knew Danny was berating himself and overthinking about the things he did and should've done like he did last night. He knew that his brother wasn't the type who shares his feelings like him so he walked over to him to stop Danny from punishing himself.

"Danny!", Lee called as he held his brother's shoulders, effectively making him stop pacing and to look at him.

Danny's eyes were reddish and glistening with tears. Lee hugged his brother tightly knowing that he needed reassurance from someone.

"She's going to be fine. Trust me okay? Calm down. She's going to be fine Danny.", Lee whispered into his brother's ear as he hugged him.

Lee broke the hug and Danny took a deep breath and nodded. They both looked at Patty who was seated on the bench by the hall.

"C'mon. Let's just sit until we hear from the doctor okay?", Lee told his brother as he pulled him towards Patty's whereabouts as he walked.

And so they waited.

But not long after they waited, a doctor came out of the doors.

"Tess Ocean?"

Danny stood up immediately and ran towards the doctor, Lee and Patty following behind.

"I'm her husband, is she okay?", Danny asked.

"Mrs. Ocean is doing fine. Her blood pressure's low and she's dehydrated. I would like to keep her overnight for observations. I can assure you that it's nothing serious and this is totally normal. They are both fine.", the doctor explained and Lee and Patty visibly relaxed but Danny stiffened.

"What do you mean 'they'?", Danny asked, clearly confused and looking directly at the doctor for an answer.

With that being said, both Lee and Patty looked at the doctor too. The doctor, however, looked at them and said.

"Oh didn't you know? Mrs. Ocean is ten weeks pregnant."

* * *

 **Aaaaand that's chapter four! Stay tuned for chapter five guys! Liked it? Hated it? Drop a review! Have a nice holiday!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey guys! Sorry for the long wait. I had a few minor setbacks in writing this chapter! And I hope you like it!**

* * *

Danny was astounded. The doctor's words repeated again and again in his head.

 _Mrs. Ocean is ten weeks pregnant._

 _Ten_ weeks _pregnant._

 _Pregnant._

His breathing was ragged and his heartbeat was fast. Lee and Patty were also shocked by the revelation and looked at each other then at Danny. He stood there, still unable to process what they were told.

The doctor, however, felt that it was a sudden news for the trio so she excused herself to give them time to think about it.

"I'll leave you to your thoughts. She'll be in room 328E in a few moments then you can go see her. If you have questions and clarifications kindly ask a nurse to page me, Doctor Clarkson."

Danny didn't seem to have been listening so Lee thanked the doctor in his behalf. Patty was overwhelmed too and she looked over to her brother-in-law who was still glued to his spot. She walked over to him and gave him a hug. Danny jumped suddenly at her touch and returned the hug.

"She'll be fine Daniel.", Patty said as they broke the hug.

Danny nodded at her words and looked at his brother who was smirking at him.

"What?", Danny asked him, one of his eyebrows raised slightly.

"You're gonna be a dad! Congratulations!", Lee said with a big smile as he came forward to give his brother a hug.

"Thanks Lee.", Danny said, still processing the news.

After a few moments, Danny spoke up.

"Hey guys?"

Both Lee and Patty looked at him.

"Is it okay if you guys go home for today? I.. I'd like to have the rest of the day with Tess, if you don't mind.", Danny said as he looked at Patty with the last phrase.

Lee lookes at Patty as if asking for her opinion and she nodded at him.

"Okay, you go in there and take care of her. We'll be back later this evening or tomorrow.", Lee said.

Patty then walked over to him and whispered in his ear.

"We haven't talked about why my sister is here in Manhattan Daniel. You've got some serious explaining to do."

Danny looked at her sheepishly and opened his mouth to say something about them being okay but decided against it and instead gave her a small nod indicating that they would talk soon.

As soon as Patty and Lee left, Danny headed to Tess' room. He slowly opened the door, careful not to disturb her. He got inside and looked at her sleeping figure in bed. He walked over by the bed and sat on the chair next to it. She looked so pale and seeing her like that lying in a hospital bed made Danny cringe. He took her hand in his and he felt her wedding ring's cold surface touch his skin. He kissed her hand and held it tightly.

"I'm sorry Tess. I'm so sorry.", he whispered as he buried his face into their intertwined hands.

He kept on whispering sorry with his face still buried into their hands. Tears were running down his cheeks as he did so. He was berating himself for the argument they had. He was blaming himself. If he hadn't pushed through with that job then she wouldn't be here in the hospital right now. He wiped his face with the back of his other hand when he felt a hand wiping of tears of his cheeks too. He looked up and saw Tess awake. She was wiping off tears from his cheeks.

"Hey.", he managed to say.

"Hey yourself.", Tess replied.

"Lee and Patty were here. They just went home to give me time with you. They said they'll be back tonight or tomorrow.", Danny said.

"Oh okay.", Tess said, her voice weak.

Hearing her voice made Danny berate himself mentally. He broke eye contact with her and clenched his fist tightly with his other hand still intertwined with hers. Tess managed to use her other hand and lifted his chin to face her.

"Daniel. Stop it.", she said calmly, effectively making Danny relax and lean in to her touch.

"I'm so sorry. I.. I shouldn't have pushed through with the job.. I.. I'm sorry.", Danny said, his voice full of emotion as he averted his gaze from his wife down to the floor.

He visibly deflated and hung his head in shame. He closed his eyes, trying to block all negative thoughts he was having at the moment. Tess was thinking of what to say when Danny looked up at her, as if he was weighing his options on what he was going to say next.

"Tess..", Danny said as he slowly looked back at her.

"Yeah?", Tess replied, slowly starting to sit up.

Danny helped her sit up then sat down again and held her hand. He looked into her eyes and decided.

"Why didn't you tell me you were pregnant?", Danny finally asked, his voice low.

Tess sighed, she saw this coming considering that she was in a hospital and he was there. She concluded that he came to see Lee with the same reason as she came to see Patty. She looked at Danny who was patiently waiting for an answer.

"I wanted to tell you so bad Danny. I found out two weeks ago and I wanted to tell you. I swear I do. It's just that I was afraid of how you would react or that you didn't want kids because we never talked about kids or having kids at all. I was scared Danny. I'm sorry.", Tess said, her eyes welling up as she did so.

Danny immediately stood up and wiped a stray tear that made its way down her cheeks.

"Hey, hey. It's okay honey. I'm not mad.", Danny soothed her, her face in his hands as he wiped the tears making their way down her cheeks.

But Tess started crying, obviously feeling guilty that she didn't tell him. Danny, on the other hand, kept on saying soothing words to calm her down.

"Hey. It's okay. I'm not mad okay? I was just shocked that's all but I'm not mad okay? Why wouldn't I want our kid? Are you kidding me? That's a mini you and me in there. Of course, I want it. I might have been surprised but I want it okay? Please stop crying honey.", Danny cajoled her, still wiping off stray tears.

"I'm sorry.", Tess apologized again.

"No. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have pushed through with the job. I'll call it off later with the boys. I love you.", Danny said and kissed her on the lips.

"I love you too Danny."

* * *

Meanwhile Patty and Lee just got in his apartment when Patty spoke up.

"Hey."

Lee turned to look at her and smiled. He pulled her in his arms and gave her a kiss.

"I love you.", Lee whispered.

"I love you too Lee.", Patty whispered back as she put her arms around his neck while he snaked his arms around her waist, pulling her close.

"God I love hearing you say that.", Lee exclaimed and kissed her again.

Patty smiled as she kissed him back. They pulled apart a few seconds later and stared into each other's eyes.

"Tell you what, how 'bout we go out tonight? Let me take you to dinner. What do you say?", Lee spoke up a few moments later.

Patty looked at him, amazed as she raised one eyebrow at him.

"What?", Lee asked with a smirk.

"It's just.. I never thought you'd be the type to ask a lady out on a date. You usually hit on them and just like that you're on a date like lightning.", Patty said as she giggled.

"You wound me Patty. But true. But hey its different with you. C'mon, what do you say? Go to dinner with me?", Lee stared into her eyes and held her hand as he asked again.

"Hmm.. I don't know. Can I think about it?", Patty mocked as she looked out the window and pretended to think about it.

Lee's face dropped and his hold on her hand loosened a little, making Patty look at him and saw his expression. She immediately took his face in her hands and made him look at her.

"Hey look at me.", Patty coaxed as she shook his head lightly in her hands.

Lee did and she could see the sadness in his eyes. _He took it seriously?_ Patty thought.

"Hey. I was only joking no need to get all serious. I would love to go to dinner with you tonight.", she said, staring into his beautiful eyes.

"I love you.", Lee said, his voice was raw and it sounded like he was about to cry.

"I know. I love you too.", Patty replied and Lee kissed her.

Patty relaxed into the kiss fully knowing she scared him again and made him think she didn't feel the same. Their kiss lasted for a few more seconds until both of them pulled apart catching their breaths.

"I'll pick you up at 6.", Lee announced happily as he gave her another quick kiss.

"6? Why so early?", Patty exclaimed as she looked at the clock hanging on the wall.

4:26 PM

"Because we'll drop by the hospital first before we head on to our dinner to check on Tess and Danny. And I probably need to bring some change clothes for Danny. You know how he gets.", Lee said matter-of-factly, smirking as he looked at Patty.

"Well then I guess I'll have to get going then.", Patty said as she stood up.

Lee was about to protest but Patty cut him off.

"If you want me to be ready by 6 then you'll let me go home."

Lee smiled and stood up. He gave her a hug and kissed her forehead.

"Okay then. I'll see you later okay?", Lee said and smiled at her.

Patty nodded and made her way out.

When she reached home, Patty immediately went to her closet to find the perfect outfit for tonight when her phone rang. She grabbed it to check who it was.

 _Unknown Caller ID_

Curious about who it was, she answered the phone.

"Patty Fenn."

 _"Hello Patty."_ , the voice said.

Patty's breath hitched when she heard it.

"What do you want Terry?", Patty hissed, walking over to the bed and sat.

Terry used to be Danny's competition with Tess but obviously he lost. And up 'til now he's still all over her. Patty wondered briefly about how and where did he get her number.

 _"Tess. She's all I want Patty."_ , Terry said calmly on the other end.

"How many times do you need to be told that she's with Danny now? They've been married for four years now Terry. Just let it go.", Patty exclaimed, her frustrationd clearly getting ahead of her.

 _"And clearly Ocean stole her from me."_ , he snapped.

"He didn't steal her. She chose him over you Terry! And if you can't live with that go find someone else to be obssessed with and leave my sister and brother-in-law alone! Got that?", Patty hissed, her voice full of venom as she spoke.

The line went silent for a moment.

 _"Tell Tess I'll see her soon."_

Then the line went dead.

Patty's blood ran cold when she heard Terry's last words. She wanted to call Danny but decided against it. She didn't want Danny to get all worked up about this just yet. Tess needs him more than ever by her side. She settled to tell Danny when she and Lee stop by the hospital later and resumed preparing for her evening out with Lee.

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 **And that's chapter 5! Thoughts? Post a review!**


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